State Lags in Deportation Shift: Pending cases of illegal immigration remain at record levels.By Ginnie Graham

Oklahoma is behind the national trend in deportations, showing a slower decline in the number of removal orders than overall U.S. numbers, according to data released by a national nonprofit organization.
Nationally, about half of the immigration cases filed result in deportation, while defendants in 76 percent to 97 percent of immigration cases in Oklahoma are ordered out of the country.
Deportations reached decades-long highs during the past two years, leading to record backlogs in immigration courts and longer wait times for hearings.
The Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse uses the Freedom of Information Act to gather data on several federal agencies, including Homeland Security, the Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Justice.